Pag« 6
Portland/Observer
Thursday, February 8, 1973
On being black in white America
l u u i iK iu t a o j i'- ie
_____ ,___ I ’ X l "
by Jarnos (Shango) Rogers
Reflection*. by J.M . Gates,
Press 22.
Vtf
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BERNIE CASEY stars as Tyrone Tackett, a super-slick street hustler, survives underworld
savagery in Hitman, opens at the Almeda on February 14, for an exclusive engagement.
"Hit Man” brings action
"Mt Man", playing at the
voted much of a lifetime to
Alameda, is a fast pared ac
creating something he con
tion story
th a t
zipped
side red art has. in fact,
around Los Angeles during
created a work of art.
filming at almost the same
Another location was a 57
breathless pace it takes on
room mansion in the West
the motion picture screen.
Los Angeles area built in
Both producer Gene Cor
1903 by a wealthy dairy
man a n d
director-writer
products tycoon. A 28-room
George Armitage are firm
English Tudor house in the
believers in utilizing actual
Los Feliz area which once
sets rather than s t u d i o
served as the Russian Em
sound stages.
The result
bassv also became a "Hit
was that "Hit Man" was
Man" set.
filmed on 37 different loca
W’hen Corman and Armi
tions. and not one foot inside
tage needed a mortuary,
a studio.
they filmed i n s i d e one.
“Hit Man," starring Bernie
Quietly, of course.
Casey, follows t h e hard
Other less intriguing loca
hitting exploits of a powerful
underworld figure seeking to
avenge the death of his
brother. Pamela Grier, Lisa
Moore and Betty Waldron
co-star.
Casey, incidentally, was a
former professional football
The T u a l a t i n Valley
star with the Los Angeles
Players will hold auditions
Rams. Miss Grier, brown
for “Stalag 17” Saturday,
eyed, pretty and very un-
February 10. 2 to 4 p.m. and
footballish in appearance, is
Sunday,
February 11, 7 to 9
nonetheless a cousin of an
p.m. at Aloha's Old Nut
other former Los Angeles
Loft, 17210 S.W. Shaw.
Ram, the all-time g r e a t
Brought back by audience
Roosevelt (Rosey) Grier.
request,
"Stalag 17" was
One filming site utilized
first p r o d u c e d by the
by Corman and Armitage is
Players several seasons ago.
the controversial W a t t s
The 1973 production will be
Towers in southeast Los
directed by Gene Small. TV
Angeles.
Built board by
Players president and Hills
board by one man, Simon
boro resident.
The play
Rodio, over a 30-year span,
requires 21 men, the major
the towers have been under
ity of whom are between the
debate for y e a r s as to
ages of 18 and 35.
Four
whether they represent art
parts are for men 35 to 50.
or a junk pile. Public senti
An ability to speak German
ment has rallied to the cause
will be helpful for those
of Rodio, however, contend
seeking the parts of German
ing that any man who de
officers.
The setting of the play is
PICK OF THE WEEK
I Can t Stand to See You C ry - M iracles
tions include the Long Beach
Athletic Club. Los Angeles
International Airport and a
remote section known as
"Africa. U.S.A.," once the
filming site for the MGM TV
series "Daktari”.
Producer Corman, both on
his own and in association
with his brother, R o g e r ,
helped shape the growing
trend for the production and
m a r k e tin g
of reason
ably budgeted films with
broad a u d i e n c e appeal.
These include pioneer work
in popularizing films about
teenagers, gangsters of the
1930s or horror subjects.
1. Superstition - Stevie W onder
2. Work To Do - Isley Bros.
3. 9992 Arguments - O’Jays
4. The World Is A Ghetto - War
5. Theme From The Men - Issac Hayes
6. If You Let Me - Eddie Hendricks
7. I've Never Found A Man - Esther Philips
8. Me s Mrs. Jones - Billy Paul
9. You ought To Be With Me - AI Green
10. Let Us Love - Rill Withers
LISTEN TO
|THE SOUL GIANT OF THE NORTHWEST
'The E. C. Soul
Experience’
KGAR
Every Saturday 12:15 - 430
a German World War II
prisoner of war camp, and
the action concerns the in
teraction of the American
Air Force men and the
Germans.
Copies of the script and
additional information a r e
available from Bob Burgoyne
644-9817, after 5 p.m.
PCC will host the Eighth
Annual Printmakers in Ore
gon Invitational Exhibit on
February 23 at the Sylvania
campus North View Gallery.
12000 S.W . 49th Avenue.
The gallery is open Monday
through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m.
The exhibit has been col
lected by the Maude Kearns
Gallery in Eugene, Oregon.
II
civilizations: ", . , the sound
of tramp, tramp . . . click,
click . . . a tulmutuous wave
. . . battalion of humanity . . .
a thundering stampede oblivi
ous . . . as | tried to find a
path up . . . almost swept up
by human waves , . .”
And throughout J JN1. Gates'
Reflections, ore is constantly
aware ol her ability to control
the language of poetry (meta
phor and Imagery) and ride
the crest of our own sensi
bilities: " , . . touch the hills;
breathe unpolluted fragrance
. . . disguise.) title remind me
of people who couldn't cope
with segregation ...d e c k le d
to pass for white . . . aband
oning heritage and living dis
guised . , . escape was not
escape after all . . ."
Finally. J.M . Gates' re
markable volume contains an
artist's
"reflections”
on
human experience and history;
that is the wars; racial strife;
personal search and dis
covery; the affairs of the
heart; suffering; poverty ; and
hope ley mid despair, she is an
extraordinary Black woman
of courage, conviction and lit
erary talent; lor many years
active in tie social and polit
ical life of Portland. (At
present she is actively cam
paigning to assure that there
is content on the Black ex
perience in the school-books
selected lor the next six
years). And si« demonstrates
this humanity and concern in
her perplexing yet angry
questioning of the privileges
of powerful "otliers":. . .
what happened that for some
there is foul air . . . noisy
one of the perpetual prob
SYMBOLS
lems of achieving recognition
Ignorance or intelligence
and acceptance in the literary
Some people tell by symbols
arts by poets writing of
Physical images denoting
the "Black experience,’’ de
one thing
volves from the abysmal ig
Printed symbols another -
norance and unwillingness of
Frequently interesting and
literary critics both In the
amusing
universities and colleges of
When both sometime mean
Oregon, and In the publishing
the same
world (publishing firms, the
Oregonian, Oregon Journal,
Oregon Times, etc.,) to accord
A sim ilar piece reiects hu
Black poets a fair and proper
man invisibility and racial
exposure to the patrons of the
divisions:
arts in Oregon.
With the sometimes excep
BARRIERS
tion of Portland State, Oregon
Invisible and yet visible
academicians have historical
Dividing humanity -
ly excluded Black literary ar
Money harriers, objectivity
tists of merit and nationally
barrie rs
recognized acclaim from tie
insensitivity, raceorclass-
literature taught and propaga
invisible and yet visible
ted in our colleges and uni
Dividing humanity.
versities. Thus, only Europ
ean and white American lit
erature is explored and criti
cized in our colleges and
been in tie broad s|ectrum
publications as worthy of crit
of the poet's concern - one
ical attention and understand
need only to "reverse" the
ing in the spectrum of '’high"
order of perception and/or
achievement in creative lit
reality - and tie human pro
erature. For example, this
cess (experience) remains
w riter has seldom encoun
constant and, orperplexing, as
tered a "scholar" or critic
in "Metamorphosis of \
of American literature who
City ": ' . ..Lethargic leader
can demonstrate a sophistica
ship manifested in decay and
ted familiarity with the cen
decline . . . apathetic, indif
tury-old tradition of Black
ferent, interest gore . . . sort
poetry. (That is. Claude Mc
of a walking cemetery . . .
Kay, Langs.on Hughes. Coun-
alive hut not living", o r w hen.
tee Cullen, Melvin Tolsen,
she lambasts the inexorable
Phyllis Wheatley, etc., to
deluge of human history
name a few.)
crashing through cities and
Now, I am not suggesting a
systematic conspiracy or
"gentlemen's agreement" un
derlies the exclusion of Black
literature. But, certainly it
tacitly implies that poetry in
America and particularly
Oregon (until tl« recent Black
by Jo ey Sasso
literary revolution) remains
the special privilege and
an amateur gourmet, said at
OBSFKt A TIONS IN ( ()\
province of white practition
The Press Box that she is
ERIN«. THE NIGH I BEAT:
er s.
The Temptations, one of the writing a cookbook. Host
One such Black poet of
nations's most popular voral Mike Wayne toasted la-na
Teacher's
Highland
exceptional talent i s .M rs. J JM.
groups, now starring in the with
Gates, the author of volume of
new show at Jeulex Podell's Cream Scotch Whiskey to
Coparabana, and they do celebrate the orcassion . . .
verse, silhouettes, (a paper
•SRI) business everywhere Singer laiu Kawlx doesn't
bound collection of twenty-two
they appear. The Tempta
poems) and Reflections, an
have his divorce yet, but
tions have thrilled audiences already he is finding separa
important collection of more
all over the world with tion a very costly item.
than sixty selections of what
seemingly effortless grace of Under a ruling oi a Lox
M rs. Gates describes a s" re-
movement anti the perfect Angeles court. Rawls
will
versible poetry” . . . that is
interweaving of their voices. have to pay his wife. I.ana
in her words, . . . "poetry
There's no competition as Jean Kawls. 30. a hefty
of an idea or ideas so ex
to who will shine above the $4.500 a month while the
pressed that it can be con
others. All of them are lead suit is pending.
Of this
veyed either forward or back
singers anti all take turns at $3,500 is for Mrs. Kawls,
ward . . . beginning to end . , .
it. Their record sales run in
Ixtu Jr. a n d
laiu Anna
or end to beginning . . . it
to the multimillions. Virtually each will receive $500. . . .
only being necessary for tie
every song they record is on
reader to scan the verse line
the best selling charts. Af Sammy Davix Jr.'s 78 year
by line . . . in order to re
ter a decade of success, they old unrle, Will Maxtin. has
are now a show business been sued for divorce by his
trieve the central motif or
institution.
The group is white. FrenchCanadian wife.
meaning of the poem."
comprised
of Dennis Ed Germaine, after nearly 40
One of the selections that
wards, Mel Franklin, Otis years of marriage. The di
captures this unique literary
Williams, Richard S t r e e t vorce is developing into a
innovation is "Introspection",
anti Damon Harris. It coni
bitter battle with Mrs. Mas
a brief meditative statement
bines experience and matur
tin demanding large loot,
on motherhood and memory
ity with youth, enthusiasm, claiming that her aged hub
undercutting the "bonds . . .
and talent to sustain their by has almost $85,000 a year
(of) human experience . .
unqualified success without rolling in as income from his
compromise. The Archbish investments. He rlaims he
op of Canterbury told the has to drain away his sav
Temptations at a meeting ings every week just to
they had in Ixindon's Ijim
make ends meet . . . The
Hungry children and des
beth Palace: “Singing is a top brass at 20th Century
perate mother
means of universal communi
Fox received two separate
differing endless hours that
cation. No doors are cloned requests the same day for a
pass
to those who can sing." The print of the studio's movie
Into day -
group
Gordy Recording hit, SOUNDER.
One re
Because robbed in a city -
Artists
is always trying to quest came directly from the
far away.
do things better and are not
White House, where Pres
resting on t h e i r laurels. ident Nixon
wanted
to
Stranger among strangers
This dedication makes them screen the movie privately.
tells her plight -
one of the most unique The other request wax from
Another age, another place
entertainment groups in the Ethel Kennedy
The 20th
listeners relive the Sa
entertainment world.
On execs had only one print
maritan tale
the s a m e hill with the which they sent to Mrs.
Temptations will be a group Kennedy. The White House
understanding and sharing a
they discovered. The Quiet wax told to “try again, next
fellowship bound -
Elegance . . . Lena Home.
week".
Human experience unites.
din . . . limited natural re
sources . . . where lies the
blaine and hopelorcbange/lor
a legacy or a curse?"
JJVI. Gates' Reflections is
an evocative and satisfying
our de forte, tor Black poets
In America (or any nationality)
that render through their «rt
an undei standing ot the human
experience transcending tem
poral and political exhorta
tion*.
JJXl. Gates Is the Black
pool-laureate ol Oregon. I
recommend you read her.
287 • 2887
Held over 1 w eekonlyl
If you steal *300.000 from the mob.
s not robbery. It s suicide. , |
7
w • _
'
Soul Stuff
Play seeks talent
B. C SOUL SURVEY
Or conversely, the poet’s
mysterious concern with time
and human definitions and con
strictions:
ANTHONY QUINN
YAPHET KOTTO
ANTHONY FRANCIOSA s K .
P x x k n d by RALPH SF.RPt- ssl l u i AH SAIO
Eiarutiv» P n a h a m A N THO NY Q UINN are! I1ARRY SHKAR
S, rr-npUv l.\ 1,1 I I I F R O A Y t , « M t d ■
A»
.1 H IA A l i Y F tK R IS
Dinstxrt by HARRY SOLAR
..................
tliutad Artwta
M R .T IS COLO H A R D STEEL!
H F U G J V E VOLI
P IA C E OF M IN O ...
P M C f BY PIECE!
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Coming February 14
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